Big Birds, Big City

CONCEPTS OF COMPREHENSION: COMPARE AND CONTRAST 5 th
Reading Passage
GRADE UNIT
Big Birds, Big City
Spotting a tourist in New York City
used to be easy. All you had to do was
look for someone toting a camera and
aiming it at one of the city's many
high-rise buildings.
These days, however, even seasoned
New Yorkers are looking skyward in
awe. They are admiring the city's
newest attractions: peregrine falcons.
These majestic 1 birds of prey, which
were on the verge of extinction, are
making a comeback across the United
States. Some have even moved to New
York City. The falcons aren't alone in
calling the Big Apple home. Bald eagles
have also moved into the
neighborhood.
Death by DDT
World Almanac for Kids
Some peregrine falcons have moved to New
York City.
Peregrine falcons are the fastest creatures in the air. They can chase
their prey at speeds of up to 200 miles per hour.
The birds were nearly wiped out in the 1960s from exposure to a
pesticide called DDT. A pesticide is a chemical designed to kill insects
and other pests that damage plants and crops. Scientists didn't realize
in the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s that DDT also harmed birds and other
animals.
According to biologists, DDT made the eggshells of peregrines and
other birds thin and fragile. The shells broke before the baby peregrine
falcons were ready to hatch. By 1970, there were only 39 known
nesting pairs of peregrine falcons in the lower 48 states.
1 majestic: stately and dignified; noble
Text: Copyright © 2007 Weekly Reader Corporation. All rights reserved.
Weekly Reader is a registered trademark of Weekly Reader Corporation.
Used by permission.
© 2010 Urban Education Exchange. All rights reserved.

CONCEPTS OF COMPREHENSION: COMPARE AND CONTRAST 5 th
Reading Passage
GRADE UNIT
Road to Recovery
The U.S. government banned DDT in 1972. A year later, Congress
passed the federal Endangered Species Act. The law protected many
animals that were in danger of dying out, including peregrine falcons.
Today, about 2,000 pairs of falcons nest nationwide, including 16
couples in New York City. The first two falcon pairs moved to the city
in 1983.
Peregrine falcons usually nest on high cliffs. In and around Manhattan,
though, the birds have built nests on bridge girders, church steeples,
and tall buildings. Peregrine falcons seem to like New York City,
according to biologist Chris Nadareski. There are plenty of pigeons and
other birds to dine on. Plus, the bridges and skyscrapers provide high,
open perches, similar to the perches on cliffs. Bird-watchers and
bridge workers monitor the falcons with Web cameras.
Last year [2005], a 10-week-old peregrine falcon left its nest too soon
and crash-landed on a street beneath the Brooklyn Bridge. A falconer
gave the dazed bird a clean bill of health and released it.
Eagle Eye
Bald eagles are the newest immigrants to
New York City. In the early 1700s, the birds
were a common sight in and around New
York. But egg collectors and pesticides almost
destroyed the entire bald eagle population in
the United States.
Two years ago, biologists took two male and
two female eaglets 2 from northern Wisconsin
to Manhattan. The scientists built a platform
for the birds in a tree in northern Manhattan
near the Hudson and Harlem rivers. Biologists
brought four more eagles to New York from
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Wisconsin this year. All have been flying near
Biologists moved four bald eagles the Hudson River in the Bronx.
from Wisconsin to New York City.
2 eaglets: baby eagles
Text: Copyright © 2007 Weekly Reader Corporation. All rights reserved.
Weekly Reader is a registered trademark of Weekly Reader Corporation.
Used by permission.
© 2010 Urban Education Exchange. All rights reserved.

CONCEPTS OF COMPREHENSION: COMPARE AND CONTRAST 5 th
Reading Passage
GRADE UNIT
The goal of the reintroduction program is to encourage the birds to
nest and breed in the region, once again making it their home. To
keep watch over the birds, scientists fitted them with radio tracking
devices.
"We're bringing our nation's symbol back to New York," the city's
parks and recreation commissioner, Adrian Benepe, told National
Geographic Today.
Birds of a Feather
Falcon
Length: 18 to 20
inches
Wingspan: 36 to 45
inches
Maximum weight:
2 pounds, 11 ounces
(Females are about
one-third larger than
males.)
Food: other birds
Life span: 10 to 12
years
Did you know?
A falcon's eyesight is
eight times more
powerful than a
human's eyesight.
Bald Eagle
Length: 3 feet
Wingspan: 6 feet to 7
feet
Maximum weight:
Females can weigh up
to 14 pounds. Males
can weigh up to 10
pounds.
Food: mostly fish, but
sometimes snakes and
small birds
Life span: 30 years
Did you know?
The bald eagle can see
more than a mile
away.
Critical Thinking
Why is it important to keep species such as the peregrine falcon and
the bald eagle from disappearing for good?
Text: Copyright © 2007 Weekly Reader Corporation. All rights reserved.
Weekly Reader is a registered trademark of Weekly Reader Corporation.
Used by permission.
© 2010 Urban Education Exchange. All rights reserved.